SURVEY – the Daily Mail thinks George Osborne is sexy. What do you think?

There’s a touch of desperation in this. The I newspaper in the week reported that the Tories have a problem appealing to women voters. Now possibly one solution to this would be to launch ‘female friendly’ policies, like improving childcare facilities, flexible working time, a greater commitment to equalities legislation, campaigns to promote more women to positions of management, help for women entering traditionally male-dominated jobs, and so on. No, obviously the Tories don’t want to do that, because that would mean interfering with the economy and private industry, who would resent such measures. The Daily Mail is always going on that increased maternity leave, for example, will penalise firms for employing women by adding increased costs.

So how do they try to counter the accusation that they are dangerously unpopular with Britain’s ladies.? Easy – they go on about how sexy George Osborne is. Really. Well, when New Labour came to power, they tried it with Gordon Brown. Brown, according to one headline, was ‘New Labour’s Mr Darcy’, following the adaptation of Pride and Prejudice that was on TV at the time.

It all reminds me of the time the Daily Mail declared that Cecil Parkinson was handsome or sexy. My mother did a straw poll of her female friends, and found that they were completely the opposite. In their view he was ‘smarmy’, and they made it very plain that they wouldn’t like to be stuck in a lift with him.

Lady Olga Maitland also tried the same thing to sex up Maggie’s family. In her biography of Maggie Thatcher, she described her son, Mark, as ‘handsome’. Private Eye in their review of the book went through it noting the various factual inaccuracies, such as when the dates were out by a couple of years or more. When they came to this alarming statement, they said simply ‘come off it.’ No doubt other women could think of stronger words to describe this latest attempt to stress the sexual desirability of leading Tory politicians.

Pride's Purge

(not satire – it’s the Daily Mail!)

Sometimes I fear for the sanity of Daily Mail editor Paul Dacre.

In the column written by Mr Dacre’s dead draft-dodging father Ephraim Hardcastle (AKA famous serial woman-hassler Peter McKay), the Chancellor Mr Osborne was described as an “Adonis” and “increasingly an object of fascination among ladies“.

I promise you I’m not making this up. See for yourself (warning – here lies Daily Mail dross):

George Osborne is the Adonis of the Commons

Of course, I might give McKay the benefit of the doubt and presume he was being ironic. The problem is – I don’t think he was.

Anyway – here’s a chance to let George Osborne know what you think about him:

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I think I’ve got all the possible answers covered there.

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Please feel free to comment.

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